Wuhan forum to build intl cooperation on industrial production

The Forum on Global Production Capacity and Business Cooperation kicks off on Sunday in Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, to promote international capacity cooperation and equipment manufacturing for central China's provinces.

The two-day event, co-hosted by the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Hubei government, will attract more than 400 overseas representatives from more than 70 countries and regions, including 55 senior officials from sectors such as energy, transport, agriculture and equipment manufacturing.

More than 1,300 delegates from domestic and overseas companies and representatives from international financial organizations, such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and Silk Road Fund Co, will attend the event.

In a speech in Latin America on May 25, 2015, Premier Li Keqiang announced that in his industrial-capacity cooperation plan, a country brings in equipment, production lines for building materials, advanced technologies and management experiences from other countries to reduce the cost of infrastructure construction.

"On industrialization and urbanization, we offer partnerships in industrial-capacity cooperation. Combining China's manufacturing prowess with the cutting-edge technologies of the developed economies, we can, together, supply good equipment at good prices to the developing world, sustaining robust growth with supply-side innovation," he wrote in an article for The Economist.

At a keynote forum on Sunday, 10 speakers will discuss development strategies, government policies, financing channels and successful cases related to international capacity cooperation.

The hosts will also organize a promotional and negotiations activity for Chinese companies that aim to invest abroad as well as for overseas investment promotional organizations and enterprises.

The activity has five sections: infrastructure, energy and minerals, mechanical equipment, network information, agriculture and agricultural product processing.

There will also be six special matchmaking events centering on central Europe, Russia, Asia, Africa, Hungary as well as optical communication equipment and engineering. Countries and regions that have potential cooperation with China on production capacity were invited to attend the events.

Officials in Hubei said local companies and other Chinese enterprises are anticipated to make achievements globally in the next five years as the country's government promotes international capacity cooperation.

The province plans to focus on steel, cement, plate glass, auto parts, optoelectronics information, solar photovoltaic and electric power to support its local companies' cooperation with other countries and regions on production capacity and equipment manufacturing.

Local officials said it would promote the construction of economic and trade cooperation zones in Southeast Asia and central Europe this year to support the global expansion of more local enterprises.

The Hubei government signed a cooperation deal with the National Development and Reform Commission in December. The commission would help coordinate and promote the 12 international capacity cooperation projects that Hubei businesses have in countries including Kazakhstan, Egypt, Russia, Vietnam and Poland.

songmengxing@chinadaily.com.cn

Highlights

June 5

Opening ceremony

Senior Chinese officials and foreign representatives to deliver speeches.

Keynote forum

Theme: Work Together to Seek Common Development

Government officials, researchers and company executives will share views and case studies on cooperation strategies, policies and financing to build international production capacity.

June 5-6

Exhibitions and fairs

Exhibitions will cover infrastructure, energy and minerals, machinery equipment, internet information and agriculture and farm-produce processing and will involve Chinese companies planning overseas investment, overseas companies and investment promotions institutions.

Matchmaking sessions

Campaigns will be held for Russia, central Europe, Hungary, Africa and Asia as well as for the optical communications and infrastructure sector where there is high potential and solid foundation of production capacity cooperation. The programs will involve Chinese companies planning overseas investment, overseas companies and investment promotion institutions and foreign diplomatic envoys. There will also be one-on-one business talks for projects.

Themed seminars

Focusing on practices in the cooperation on global production capacity, scholars and industry insiders from home and abroad will discuss the importance of working together on international production capacity and how to improve the effectiveness of that cooperation in central Chinese regions by seizing on their advantages.